Apparatus for facilitating the passage of rigid connectors coupling flexible elements around a rotary member

ABSTRACT

A device adapted to be associated with a rotary member, e.g. a pulley or drum, for assisting the passage therearound of rigid connectors coupling flexible elements of a flexible member, e.g. a belt, cable, etc., comprises a pair of shoe elements defining therebetween a recess to receive a connector, the shoe being normally positioned out of the path of the flexible member and being movable, on detection of the arrival of a connector at the rotary member to a position between the rotary member periphery and flexible member with the connector positioned in the recess, the shoe being coupled to rotate with the rotary member closing the passage of the connector therearound.

United States Patnt [191 [111 3,776,516

Daniel Dec. 4, I973 APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING TI-IE Primary ExaminerRichard E. Aegerter PASSAGE OF RIGID CONNECTORS COUPLING FLEXIBLE ELEMENTS AROUND A ROTARY MEMBER Inventor: Edmond Daniel,

Saulx-les-Chartreux, France Assignee: Societe Creusof-Loire, Paris, France Filed: Dec. 8, 1972 Appl. No.: 313,474

US. Cl 254/190 R Int. Cl 866d 1/36 Field of Search 254/190 R; 74/243 R References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 2/1965 Canada 254/190 R Assistant Examiner-41. S. Lane Attorney--William B. Kerkam [5 7 ABSTRACT A device adapted to be associated with a rotary member, e.g. a pulley or drum, for assisting the passage therearound of rigid connectors coupling flexible elements of a flexible member, e.g. a belt, cable, etc,

comprises a pair of shoe elements defining therebetween a recess to receive a connector, the shoe being normally positioned out of the path of the flexible member and being movable, on detection of the arrival of a connector at the rotary member to a position between the rotary member periphery and flexible member with the connector positioned in the recess, the shoe being coupled to rotate with the rotary member closing the passage of the connector therearound.

10 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures PATENTEDUEE 41m sum 2 OF 4 PATENTEUBEB 4191s SHEET 3 [IF 4 APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING THE PASSAGE OF RIGID CONNECTORS COUPLING FLEXIBLE ELEMENTS AROUND A ROTARY MEMBER The invention relates to a device to be associated with a rotary member such as a pulley or drum, around which passes all or part of a flexible member such as cable, tube, etc., formed of elemental lengths joined end to end by rigid connectors, the device permitting the connectors to pass round the rotary member without causing bending of the joins between the flexible member elements and connectors.

A device embodying the invention can be used wherever flexible members joined by rigid or semi-rigid connectors are wound on to reversing pulleys, pulley blocks or storage drums. It can also be applied to the laying of telephone cables and flexible pipelines, to the manoeuvring of a flexible shaft during drilling or of a very long cable, eg for towing equipment submerged in very deep water (such as fishing or oceanographic equipment).

It is an object of the invention to provide a device whereby it is possible to avoid the breaks which tend to occur in connector joins between flexible members due to bending of the joins when the flexible members wind on to rotary members such as pulleys, drums, etc.

According to the invention there is provided a device for facilitating the passage of connectors joining elements of a flexible member passing round a rotary member, the device comprising: a double shoe defining a recess whose shape and dimensions are suited to those of the connector, the shoe being normally disengaged from the rotary member and in an inoperative position between the upstream and downstream portions of the flexible member; coupling means operable to cause said shoe to rotate with the rotary member; control means for operating said coupling means; a detector situated adjacent the upstream portion of the flexible member and adapted to energise said control means when a connector passes; and means for deenergising said coupling means when said shoe lies between the two said portions of the flexible member.

Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1 to 4 are diagrammatic side and part sectional ilustrations of an embodiment of a device in accordance with the invention during different stages in its operation;

FIG. 5 is an axial section through a device associated with a pulley, and having a shoe support by which the shoe is supported at a fixed distance from the pulley axis and having a central coupling operable to rotate the support synchronously with the pulley;

FIG. 6 is an axial section through a variant of the preceding device in which the shoe can bear on the pulley during rotation in order to relieve the load on its support;

FIG. 7 is an axial section through a device in which the shoe is rotated with the driving pulley, by frictional engagement of the shoe with the pulley;

FIG. 8 is an axial section through a variant of the device of FIG. 7; and

FIGS. 9 to 12 are side and axial section views of devices in which the shoe is driven by friction engagement with the pulley.

The device shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is associated with a reversable pulley l which rotates freely on a shaft 2, a length of a flexible member 31 passing around its rim 11. The device comprises a double shoe formed of two similar elements 43, 44 and held radially spaced from the pulley rim by a support 5. The double shoe is normally disengaged from the pulley in respect of rotation and in a waiting position (shown in FIG. 1) situated between the two flexible-member portions upstream and downstream of the pulley. By means of mechanisms of various kinds the double shoe can be made to engage with the pulley in respect of rotation (while still being held spaced from the pulley rim 11 or alternatively being applied to the rim) so that it can be inserted between the flexible member 31 and the rim. The radially inner surface 41 of the double shoe conforms to the peripheral surface of the rim 11 and may or may not bear on the rim, depending on the support for the double shoe. A gap 42 in the double shoe is intended to receive a connector 32 joining two lengths of the flexible member 31. The curved radially outer surface of the two elements 43, 44 of the double shoe is designed to prevent any contact between the connector 32 and the rim 1 1, whether the thickness of the connector equals or exceeds the thickness of the flexible member. As a result any bending which might produce a break in the area of the joint between the flexible members and the connector is eliminated.

Operation of the device is as follows.

When the double shoe of the device is held in the inoperative or waiting position shown in FIG. 1, the shoe or support 5 is clamped by a stopping/locking mechanism 7, and the pulley 1 rotates freely on its axis. When a connector such as 32 appears in register with detector 6, the detector first causes unlocking of the stoppingllocking mechanism 7 and then operation of driving means which causes the double shoe to engage and rotate with the pulley 1. The leading element 44 of the double shoe then introduces itself beneath the flexible member 31 (FIG. 2), the shoe/pulley connection being sufficient to prevent the shoe from slipping relative to the pulley. The connector 32 then enters the gap 42 (FIG. 3). When the connector 32 leaves the pulley the double shoe disengages from the downstream portion of the flexible member (FIG. 4). Finally the double shoe returns to its waiting position as shown in FIG. 1 and is there disengaged from the pulley in respect of rotation. This step is initiated by a downstream detector 8 operated by the passage of the connector therepast, by a detector operated by passage of the shoe therepast, or by timing means. The double shoe 43, 44 or its support 5 is stopped by the stopping/locking device 7. In the embodiment illustrated the device 7 has fingers such as 71 which retract to permit unlocking of the double shoe and which then resume their positions. After carrying out a complete revolution the support 5 comes to bear on these fingers, the inertia of the movable assembly being absorbed by resilient elements 72.

The detector 6, which controls the driving means connecting the double shoe to the pulley and possibly also the stopping/locking mechanism, may be a simple, conventional circuit with storage means (e.g. a relay) operated when a connector passes the detector 6 and controlling the circuit which supplies power to the driving means. The storage means is subsequently restored to its initial state by means of the downstream detector operated, for example, by the passage of a connector,

or by timing means. The control circuit may be electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic or a combination thereof. Alternatively, control may be effected mechanically. If the diameters of the connector and flexible member are the same, the connector may be marked with a coloured or magnetic substance for the purpose of detection.

The design of the support for the shoe and its connection to the pulley for rotation therewith may vary according to the loads or the pulley diameter.

In FIG. 5 the double shoe 9 is rigidly attached to two lateral arms 10, 11, freely rotatable relative to the shaft of the pulley 12 by means of rolling bearings 13 inserted between hubs 101, 111 attached to the arms and the pulley hub 121, which is attached to the shaft 14. A coupling 15 coaxial with the pulley is operable to cause the arms 10, 11 to rotate with the driving pulley 12.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 6 is designed to prevent forces applied to the flexible member 19 from being transmitted to the support arms 17, 18 and to the rolling bearing assembly. To this end the double shoe 16 is guided radially on lateral arms 17, 18. The double shoe 16 is mounted on lateral pins such as 20 slidable in elongate slots in the arms 17, 18. In the absence of a radial load on the shoe, the shoe tends to be maintained radially spaced from the rim of the pulley 23 by springs such as 21, 22, which are mounted between movable blocks such as 212, 222 (connected to the double shoe and guided by rods such as 211, 221) and blocks 213, 223 attached to the arms 17, 18. These arms 17, 18 are freely rotatable relative to the pulley 23, and are coupled for rotation therewith by means of a central coupling 24. Radial movement of the double shoe takes place when the latter is introduced between the flexible member 19 and the pulley rim. The double shoe is then applied to the rim and the stresses in the flexible member are therefore transmitted to the pulley 23.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, rotation of the double shoe 26 with the pulley 27 is effected by frictional engagement between the shoe and pulley as a result of a compressive force. To this end the double shoe 26 is attached to a radially movable shoe carrier 28, mounted on a support 131 by way of links 29 which permit radial movement of the shoe and are mounted inside a forked portion of the support 131, which is rotatable relative to the pulley 27. Coupling is effected by clamping the double shoe 26 on to the pulley 27. To assist this the radially inner contact surface of the double shoe 26 may be provided with a frcition lining 132. The compressive force is generated by an actuator 33 which moves the shoe carrier 28 radially inwards. With this arrangement, as may be seen from the drawing, the whole of the shoe operating mechanism is on one and the same side of the pulley. This arrangement is advantageously used for pulleys arranged side by side, for example in pulley blocks.

In the device shown in FIG. 8 the shoe 133 is again driven by frictional engagement between the shoe and the pulley rim. This device is particularly suitable for large-diameter pulleys. The double shoe 133 is mounted in a cage 34 formed of two side members 341, 342, each of which is radially and axially guided relative to the pulley 35 by rollers such as 36, 37 running on annular axial surfaces 351 to 354 on the rim and by rollers (not shown) whose axes are perpendicular to those of the first rollers 36, 37 and which run on annular circumferential runways 355, 356. The two side members are interconnected by the double shoe 133, the connections being resilient in order to permit radial movement of the shoe. The side members 341, 342 are therefore connected to the shoe 133 by resilient elements 38, 39. Radial movement of the double shoe 133 is effected by way of a shaft 40, of which one end is rotatably mounted in the side member 341 and the other of which is coupled to be operated by an actuator 141, and whose central portion is connected to the double shoe 133 by a ball and socket joint. The body of the actuator 141 which applies the double shoe to the rim of the pulley, and which therefore causes it to be driven by the pulley, is mounted on the side member 342. An arm 142 supports the lines supplying the actuator. The pulley 35 is freely rotatable on the pin shaft 143, which is rotated by its connection to the arm 142.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 the shoe 144 is driven by fricition between it and the rim of the driving pulley 47. The force causing the double shoe to be applied to the rim is of an electromagnetic nature. The double shoe 144 is radially movably mounted on two lateral arms 45, 46 freely rotatable relative to the pulley 47. For this purpose the arms 45, 46 are connected to the double shoe by resilient blocks 48. The arms 45, 46 and double shoe 144 are rotated by application of the double shoe to the rim as a result of an electromagnetic force generated by an electromagnet 49, which is mounted in the shoe and is connected to two collectors 50, 51 on which brushes 52, 53 rub. The supply of power to the electromagnets by way of the brushes is of course controlled, as above described, by a control circuit of which the upstream detector 54 is an input element.

In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 the shoe 154 is frictionally coupled to the rim as a result of a force of an electromagnetic nature. While in the waiting position the double shoe 154 rests on a sole plate with a cylindrical bearing surface 55, which also guides the shoe when it begins and stops rotating. The shoe 154 is applied to the rim of the pulley 56 by means of electromagnetic force generated by electromagnets, which are energised when a connector passes the detector 58. The supply circuit for the electromagnets is mounted on an arm 59 which is freely rotatable on the pulley shaft 60 and which is rotated with the double shoe by means of links 61 permitting slight radial movement of the double shoe. The double shoe is locked in a waiting position by a locking mechanism 62, whose operation has already been described.

The invention is not intended to be limited to the details of the embodiments just described, which may be modified by means of technical equivalents and to which any useful element may be added. For example, instead of being associated with a pulley or drum, the device may be associated with a device of the type having an endless flexible element winding over two freely rotatable pulleys or drums, in which case the connected elements could run over the endless flexible member and drive it.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for facilitating the passage of connectors joining elements of a flexible member passing round a rotary member, the device comprising: a double shoe defining a recess whose shape and dimensions are suited to those of the connector, the shoe being normally disengaged from the rotary member and in an inoperative position between the upstream and downstream portions of the flexible member; coupling means operable to cause said shoe to rotate with the rotary member; control means for operating said coupling means; a detector situated adjacent the upstream portion of the flexible member and adapted to energise said control means when a connector passes; and means for deenergising said coupling means when said shoe lies between the two said portions of the flexible member.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rotary member is a body of revolution and the inner surface of said shoe conforms to the peripheral surface of the body of revolution.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, comprising means for clamping rotational movement of said shoe when it is disengaged from the rotary member and before it arrives at said inoperative position.

4. A device as claimed in claim 1, comprising means for clamping said double shoe in said inoperative position.

5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shoe is mounted on support means including at least one member rotatably mounted coaxially of said rotary member, said shoe being spaced from the periphery of the rotary member.

6. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shoe is guided radially on at least one support member rotatably mounted coaxially of said rotaiy member, said shoe being movable radially to bear on the periphery of the rotary member.

7. A device as claimed in claim 6, including progressive coupling means coaxial with said rotary member and operable to couple the support member to the rotary member for rotation therewith.

8. A device as' claimed in claim 1, including force generating means operable to generate a force to cause said shoe to bear on the periphery of said rotary member.

9. A device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the shoe is mounted for radial movement on a carriage which is guided relative to the rotary member and which carries driving means operable for applying the shoe to the periphery of the rotary member.

10. A device as claimed in claim 7, including a cradle on which the shoe rests when in the inoperative position, and electromagnet means operable to apply the shoe to the periphery of the rotary member.

, UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE: CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTIQN Patent No. 3, 7.761 516 v Dnted December 4, 1973 Inventor-(s) Edmond Daniel It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as "shown below:

[73] "CreusofE-Loire" should read Creusot-Loire The foreign priority date was omitted. Should'read French appln. no. 7145444 December 17, 1971 Signed and sealed this 15th day of October 1974.

(SEAL) Attest: I Y v MCCOY M. GIBSON JR'. (2. MARSHALL DANN V v Commissioner of Patents Attesting/Officer USCOMM-DC 60376-P69 at us. GOVkR-NMENI mmflus OFFICE I969 0-365-334 FORM PO-VJSU (10-69) 

1. A device for facilitating the passage of connectors joining elements of a flexible member passing round a rotary member, the device comprising: a double shoe defining a recess whose shape and dimensions are suited to those of the connector, the shoe being normally disengaged from the rotary member and in an inoperative position between the upstream and downstream portions of the flexible member; coupling means operable to cause said shoe to rotate with the rotary member; control means for operating said coupling means; a detector situated adjacent the upstream portion of the flexible member and adapted to energise said control means when a connector passes; and means for deenergising said coupling means when said shoe lies between the two said portions of the flexible member.
 2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rotary member is a body of revolution and the inner surface of said shoe conforms to the peripheral surface of the body of revolution.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 1, comprising means for clamping rotational movement of said shoe when it is disengaged from the rotary member and before it arrives at said inoperative position.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 1, comprising means for clamping said double shoe in said inoperative position.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shoe is mounted on support means including at least one member rotatably mounted coaxially of said rotary member, said shoE being spaced from the periphery of the rotary member.
 6. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shoe is guided radially on at least one support member rotatably mounted coaxially of said rotary member, said shoe being movable radially to bear on the periphery of the rotary member.
 7. A device as claimed in claim 6, including progressive coupling means coaxial with said rotary member and operable to couple the support member to the rotary member for rotation therewith.
 8. A device as claimed in claim 1, including force generating means operable to generate a force to cause said shoe to bear on the periphery of said rotary member.
 9. A device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the shoe is mounted for radial movement on a carriage which is guided relative to the rotary member and which carries driving means operable for applying the shoe to the periphery of the rotary member.
 10. A device as claimed in claim 7, including a cradle on which the shoe rests when in the inoperative position, and electromagnet means operable to apply the shoe to the periphery of the rotary member. 